Brewing with Wormwood

jrgile02 · Oct 20, 2005

Ive noticed on the midwest supplies website that they have wormwood in their adjuncts and aditives section. Does anybody know about brewing with this. Procedures, techniques, with what brews does it go with? Anybody know what the deal is?

PS Drinking Tongue Splitter from Northern Brewer right now, pretty hop hop hoppy Cheers-Jordan

ScottT · Oct 20, 2005

Only in absence

Brew Runner · Oct 20, 2005

Eh, that would be absinthe. You're only absent after drinking it

.

I'm curious too.

God Emporer BillyBrew · Oct 20, 2005

Yeah, it's the stuff in Absinthe that makes you all goofy. :drunk:

ScottT · Oct 20, 2005

Never had it, can't spell it, don't want it.

jrgile02 · Oct 20, 2005

I know what absinthe is I was just wondering why they would have it in the additives section in midwestsupplies if you couldnt brew with it. Does anybody know what the deal is?

ScottT · Oct 20, 2005

People make their own.

wild · Oct 20, 2005

It is also used as an Old Love Charm.

On St. Luke's Day Oct. 18, take marigold flowers, a sprig of marjoram, thyme, and a little Wormwood; dry them before a fire, rub them to powder; then sift it through a fine piece of lawn, and simmer it over a slow fire, adding a small quantity of virgin honey, and vinegar. Anoint yourself with this when you go to bed, saying the following lines three times, and you will dream of your partner "that is to be":
"St. Luke, St. Luke, be kind to me,
In dreams let me my true-love see."

Wild

Duvel · Oct 20, 2005

They probably supply it for illicit distillers, just like the way they supply proof hydrometers etc. You need to have a spirit first which you then briefly boil with the wormwood to infuse the liquor with the chemicals.

Yeah I used to distill a lot, not anymore.

Wormwood is not used in brewing whatsoever afaik.

Tony · Oct 20, 2005

There have been some odd beers people have sold highlighting wormwood, and others having either hemp, cannabis, cannibis seeds in it as well. Also vodkas and other spirits as well. All are really just hype and BS in reality, trying to sell their products. I cant understand why Midwest sells it. But hey, to each his own.

As for absinthe, I tried the modern versions of it and in my opinion, its awful. And the sugar didnt help it at all. It was something like 75-80% alcohol, and burned like heck. But it did give you a wide eyed weird feeling for sure.

To me, if you love scotch, then you would like it.

Kephren · Oct 23, 2005

Wormwood is a common ingredient in fortified wines. Vermouth has as much wormwood as absinthe. Of course, I didn't find this out until real absinthe did nothing for me and I did a little research.

Tony · Oct 23, 2005

Cool, thanks for the info on that Kephren.

PeatReek · Nov 2, 2005

Tony said:
As for absinthe, I tried the modern versions of it and in my opinion, its awful. And the sugar didnt help it at all. It was something like 75-80% alcohol, and burned like heck. But it did give you a wide eyed weird feeling for sure.

for the record, the absinthe ceremony usually entails using 2-5 times as much water as spirit, which you pour over the sugarcube; you don't just stir in the sugar and drink the absinthe at anywhere near full concentration.

But yes, many of the contemporary ones are total trash regardless. Try Jade if you're ever curious again

homebrewer_99 · Nov 2, 2005

I've had plenty absinthe when I lived in Europe.

I still can't see what the big deal is.

It tasted like crap. I wasn't even certain I got high. I finished my nights off drinking beer.........

Dude · Nov 2, 2005

homebrewer_99 said:
I've had plenty absinthe when I lived in Europe.

I still can't see what the big deal is.

It tasted like crap. I wasn't even certain I got high. I finished my nights off drinking beer.........

That's where I had it too. The REAL stuff. The "green fairy" is a myth, IMHO.
The stuff is nasty bitter and hardly green. It is more of a faint piss yellowish looking drink. I just didn't get the point of it.

david_42 · Nov 2, 2005

Unfortunately, many absinthes are basically decoctions of herbs in vodka. Distilling absinthe is tricky, so too many companies don't bother. Since very few people know what it should taste like, a lot of junk gets sold. It's real, but not very good. At it's best, you either like it or not.

Think about the late '90s when the megas were pushing their "craft" beers.

Tony · Nov 2, 2005

PeatReek said:
for the record, the absinthe ceremony usually entails using 2-5 times as much water as spirit, which you pour over the sugarcube; you don't just stir in the sugar and drink the absinthe at anywhere near full concentration.

But yes, many of the contemporary ones are total trash regardless. Try Jade if you're ever curious again

Just to let you know, I do know the complete traditional method of preparing absinthe, as well as the non traditional sugar lighting method, which tries to carmalize the sugar, but mainly just adds a burnt taste. Ive tried many of the present day brands, including Nouvelle-Orleans (Jade) and do not like any of them.

N.O. is not the traditional recipe, as it was made to replicate the old New Orleans absinthe used in history. It louches good, but before louching, it has a blue/green color, rather than the normal green coloring. Also, it is high in fennel and anise, but carries over a spicy taste.

At least N.O. didnt send me running trying to get the taste off of my tongue like the rest of the modern day brands, but did it still isnt my cup of tea.

Kephren · Nov 2, 2005

I've got a bottle of Sebor Absinthe in my liquor cabinet. A friend and I wanted to try it because of the Thujone. Didn't do anything but get us drunk. It wansn't bad, but at nearly $100/bottle shipped from the U.K., I expected more... or at least *something*...

Mitch Hedburg did a bit once on Absinthe. He said it's supposed to make you trip, but it just made him drunk, so he had to fake-trip: "Why is the floor as low as I can go?"

david_42 · Nov 2, 2005

An article on it in Wired: http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/13.11/absinthe.html?tw=wn_tophead_11

Tony · Nov 3, 2005

Kephren said:
I've got a bottle of Sebor Absinthe in my liquor cabinet...

I have a bottle of Sebor as well. I originally bought two bottles, and opened one to try it, and ended up giving it away to my step daughter. We had previously discussed absinthe in history, and since she is a history teacher and had only read about it, I figured she woud get a kick out of trying it. The second bottle is in my cabinet for "show" only now.

And Mitch Hedburg was a funny guy. May he rest in peace.

rewster451 · Nov 3, 2005

Absinthe uses a lot of herbs and spices like anise and that's what contributes a lot of the flavor in absinthe that people don't like (I love it, but I also love scotch). My belief was that wormwood itself probably tastes like crap which is why they go to all the trouble to disguise it with anise, which is very strong. I've had several varieties of absinthe, but only the one I bought in England, which I can't remember the name of, but it had no green fairy, got me anything but drunk. It made an animal of me and I don't remember much of it. Thujone is a nervous system toxin. It basically shuts down your lower mental functions, and will eventually kill you.
My two cents:
Try absinthe once. Take it easy on it, and I don't think you want wormwood in your beer. Just one man's opinion.

Cheesefood · Nov 3, 2005

I've always been interested in Absinthe, but I've come to the opinion that you just can't get it the way you used to.

Yes, I'm interested in it for the buzz, not the flavor. I've heard that it's something like NyQuil with more black-licorice (which is FN, in my opinion). Here's the problem:

I've done just about everything out there for a good buzz. I've smoked it, snorted it, eaten it, dropped it and popped it. I haven't injected anything and don't want to until I'm in hospice. I don't think Absinthe is going to impress me.

It comes down to this: I like beer. I can no longer handle smoking "it", snorting "it", eating "it", dropping "it" or popping "it". In case you didn't have the college experience I had, let me just tell you that there are a lot of fine buzz-inducing substances out there that will leave you unimpressed and broke. Then there's beer, which finds new ways to bring you happiness. Vodka and bourbon are good too, but they have a way of making a Wednesday morning SUCK.

If you're curious about anyting else, let me sum it up for you: First time is awesome, second time is good, third time isn't as good as the first two times and the 42nd time you wonder what's the point. By the 10,000th time, you'll just be bored.

rewster451 · Nov 4, 2005

I hear what you're saying Cheesefood. But you really should try Absinthe once. Once. And they do make it like they used to, but you have to put a lot of effort into finding it.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of fakes out there. On some websites (I don't want to enable anyone here) they talk about specific thujone content. The higher the better, for the buzz. It's also really cool when you mix it with water and it turns into a greenish milk looking drink. It's fun. If you have less than four drinks in one night. Don't go over that amount. Seriously.

Cheesefood · Nov 4, 2005

rewster451 said:
I hear what you're saying Cheesefood. But you really should try Absinthe once. Once. And they do make it like they used to, but you have to put a lot of effort into finding it.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of fakes out there. On some websites (I don't want to enable anyone here) they talk about specific thujone content. The higher the better, for the buzz. It's also really cool when you mix it with water and it turns into a greenish milk looking drink. It's fun. If you have less than four drinks in one night. Don't go over that amount. Seriously.

Hey man, if you have a source for good Absinthe, pass it on! Like I said, I'd like to try it but I'm not about to spend $100 for liquour that tastes like poop. I have found that drinking straight NyQuil is a decent buzz as-is. If you have something stronger, PM me with a link and I'll buy it. I know many who have bought Absinthe (in Spain) but few who have found anything more than a drunk-buzz.

rewster451 · Nov 4, 2005

I'm not really comfortable talking about this on this particular website. Go to Erowid. they'll tell you everything you need to know.

http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/absinthe/absinthe.shtml

Cheesefood · Nov 4, 2005

rewster451 said:
I'm not really comfortable talking about this on this particular website. Go to Erowid. they'll tell you everything you need to know.

http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/absinthe/absinthe.shtml

Got info on Salvia Divinorim from that site! I want to eventally make a Salvia brew, when I figure out how.

ScottT · Nov 4, 2005

Guys, I'm sorry to say that after reading that site. I really, really don't want to try the stuff. This stuff is poison. The experiences that many have are just plain bad and the folks that report good experiences are freaking illegial drug users.

I like beer. I don't do illegal drugs of any kind, never have and never will.

DeadSquirrel · Nov 8, 2005

Mad Hatter Beer is available just about everywhere and they successfully brew their beer with wormwood. Today's wormwood has none of the original 'attributes' of the old fashioned wormwood. Think hemp vs. marijuana.

Today's absinthe kits have you 'distill' using vodka. It's not the same as the original old-timey classic.

Walker · Nov 8, 2005

ScottT said:
Guys, I'm sorry to say that after reading that site. I really, really don't want to try the stuff. This stuff is poison. The experiences that many have are just plain bad and the folks that report good experiences are freaking illegial drug users.

I like beer. I don't do illegal drugs of any kind, never have and never will.

Alcohol is poisonous, too.

Hypothetical question: What if prohibition returned in the USA? Would you stop drinking beer?

-walker

ScottT · Nov 8, 2005

Walker said:
Alcohol is poisonous, too.
-walker

I don't have the time or the energy to debate this with you. Don't beleive the MADD propiganda.

As to your other question, I hope I don't have to ever make that decision.

Brewing with Wormwood

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I use secondaries. :p

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